Alcaraz II of Tokyo

Nearly 8 months had passed sinceCarlos Alcaraz lifted his last title at the ATP Doha. After overcoming a serious wrist injury, the Spanish tennis player has regained his best form and defeated Jiri Lehecka 7-6(4), 6-4 in the final of the ATP Tokyo to repeat the title won in 2025 and smile again.

Just like throughout the tournament, Alcaraz improved as the match went on, ultimately overwhelming Lehecka with an arsenal of shots that make him virtually unstoppable. Despite conceding few opportunities on his serve, the Spanish player capitalized on a lapse from Jiri in each set to call upon his experience and claim his third title of 2026 following the Australian Open and Doha. With Sinner out until 2027, the Spanish player has a clear path to reign on the circuit and compete with Alexander Zverev for the major tournaments ahead in what has possibly been the most challenging season of his career.

Alcaraz comes back to win the tie break

The match began in the worst way for the Spanish player, as he suffered a break in the first game that would affect him for the rest of the set. Only Ugo Humbert had managed to break Lehecka's serve throughout the tournament, and proof of this was that Alcaraz made no points in his first two games on return. However, in the third game on Jiri's serve, the Spanish player had several break points. The first two were saved by the Czech with two great shots, but on the third, Carlos produced a magnificent angled backhand that leveled the score.

From that moment on, Alcaraz grew in confidence on serve and Lehecka began to have more doubts, conceding many opportunities to the Murcian, who became increasingly comfortable varying heights and reading the Czech's game. This dynamic led to the tie break, which was a roller coaster of emotions. Jiri managed to gain an advantage thanks to several unforced errors from Carlos, but when facing a player with such magic, you can never let your guard down. An incredible return, a signature drop shot, and a forehand that was like a hammer allowed Alcaraz to turn around the tie break and take the first set, letting out a shout that echoed throughout the stadium.

Alcaraz wins a title again after 8 months

The second set started much more evenly than the first, with no lapses from Alcaraz and both players very solid on serve. The feeling was that any small error would tilt the set to one side, and that moment of weakness arrived in Lehecka's service game at 3-3, after three magnificent returns from Alcaraz that gave him a 30-40 lead. The Spaniard did not fail, forcing Jiri to miss at the net to get closer than ever to the title.

Although Lehecka did not concede any more opportunities on his serve, Alcaraz only needed to hold his serve to reign again in Tokyo and demonstrate (in case there were still doubts) that he is back as if time had not stood still for almost 5 months. Now it’s time to think about the Masters 1000 in Shanghai, which will start in a few days before facing the indoor hard court European tour that will mark the end of a season that has been a roller coaster of emotions for the Murcian.

This is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, Alcaraz II de Tokio